spoonmaker’s diamond
The Most Valuable Diamond in the World The Most Precious Diamond in the World; Spoon maker’s Diamond
Spoon maker’s Diamond is among the 20 most known diamonds in the World. Being displayed in Topkapı Palace, this diamond takes its name from its round shape like a spoon. The information about how this valuable diamond of 86 carats came to the Ottoman Palace does not go beyond the narration. Spoon maker’s Diamond is surrounded by 49 diamonds in two rows. A Spoon maker’s Diamond is a detail that we can have little knowledge about the value of a material.
The Most Valuable Diamond in the World
In Istanbul of 1699; each province, district and neighborhood had a separate garbage collector assigned by the kadi. Those people called “the gauntlet” paid taxes according to the garbage they collect. They were completely left to themselves and they made a living by selling them. One of these poor people found a round stone between the goods that descended to the coast of Eğriapı-Suriçi at an unspecified date and he purified it from the mud. He took the stone and went to a spoon maker called “the carver”. He sold the piece of stone in return of three wooden spoons. The cunning spoon maker, without losing any time, took it to the neighboring jeweler and sold it for 10 akçe(an old currency). The situation gets further complicated:
The Most Valuable Diamond in the World
Shopkeepers brought a variety of trashes, baskets and curtains to the sanitation wharfs on the side of the estuary, collected garbage was washed off by sea water on mud boats on the seaside and put into groups. If they found valuable things in the garbage, they would own them.
When the jeweler who bought the stone consulted with another friend, they realized how precious the stone is as the second jeweler was mesmerized. They started arguing. The argument was so harsh that eventually the leader of jewelers got involved in the occasion. To sum up, leader of jewelers gave a pouch of gold to both and ceased the quarrel. The stone is now embroidered by the leader jeweler.
However, this incident may have probably taken place in around of ‘Saray-ı Hümayun’ as the issue was heard by Köprülüzade Fazıl Ahmet Paşa who is one of the most powerful grand viziers of the Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman Sultan Mehmet the IV who was wise and sophisticated immediately got into the situation and made the stone a state property of Ottoman Empire. When the stone is processed, a rare diamond of 86 carats was obtained. Lastly, he promoted the leader of jewelers and gave a pouch of gold.